This invention relates to a liquid scouring cleanser type composition. More particularly, this invention relates to a liquid scouring composition which does not scratch soft materials, such as aluminum and stainless steel, and yet has sufficient abrasive action to clean effectively.
There are a number of patents describing scouring cleaner compositions. Many of these compositions use and disclose abrasives having all levels of hardness. However, compositions which have described themselves as being non-scratching utilize abrasives having a Mohs hardness of 3 or less, including abrasives such as calcium carbonate and the like. These compositions have some abrasive character, however, are sufficiently soft so that they do not scratch aluminum or stainless steel surfaces. Generally, on the Mohs hardness scale, abrasives with a hardness of less than 3 will not scratch aluminum and stainless steel while abrasives with a Mohs hardness of greater than 3 will scratch these materials.
It has also been known in the metal polish art to use abrasives having higher abrasive characteristics and Mohs hardness to clean metals and to combine these materials with fatty acids and base, such as ammonium and amines, as well as sodium hydroxide. However, these compositions are generally recommended for use on metals other than soft metals, such as silver and brass.
It has now been discovered that, by using appropriate ratios of abrasive to metal soap, hard abrasives having a Mohs hardness of greater than 3 can be used in aqueous liquid cleanser compositions usable on a variety of surfaces, including easily scratched surfaces such as aluminum and stainless steel. Further, it has been found that these compositions are highly efficacious in removing food encrustations and leave a hydrophobic film upon the surface cleaned so that the same may be easily dried and quickly reused.